


What He'd Rather Not Say

by phrazes



Category: The Amazing Spider-Man (Movies - Webb)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-25
Updated: 2015-08-25
Packaged: 2018-04-17 03:59:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4651392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phrazes/pseuds/phrazes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter is the only person Harry feels truly connected to. Three years have gone by since he returned to New York City, and he contemplates what’s happened between them in that time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What He'd Rather Not Say

**Author's Note:**

> This sort of just tumbled out of my brain one night in a different form than I’m used to writing in. I hope it’s still enjoyable to some.
> 
> Long live TASM!Parksborn!

It’s been nearly three years since Harry became the sole living Mr. Osborn. Despite his father being on the outskirts of his life as he grew up, his death changed many things. Harry’s the CEO of Oscorp, one whose capabilities are doubted by nearly every one of his colleagues (Felicia, thank God, keeps him steady on his feet). He’s inherited over a billion dollars, which he hardly knows what to do with besides buying himself some property in different parts of the world, like a cottage in Switzerland and a bungalow in Costa Rica. The money’s mostly given him freedom. It doesn’t compare though, to the freedom he’s gotten from his father not being there to chastise him anymore. No more Norman.

Returning to New York City also brought Peter Parker back. The first few months, he didn’t realize how much space Peter took up, how his old friend managed to fill in every crack. They went to the shore and caught up with each other, and it seemed mundane enough. Harry noticed Peter’s wrists as he threw stones into the river, and spotted a vein going up to his middle knuckle. Peter laughed at his little jokes and Harry was confused by how hot his own face suddenly became as he heard that gruff but boyish chuckle coming from a person who, up until then, he had only known as a little boy.

The first summer passed by. Harry rolled into a routine of going into the office at 8 a.m, and getting out by 6. To an outsider, it might’ve been dull, but all the projects and tasks Harry had to shuffle through made those blistering months go by quick.

When time went slow, it meant Peter showed up.

They did what all friends do, but with Harry’s deep pockets, they were able to do even more. Harry took him out on his sailboat occasionally. They went swimming in rooftop pools. Harry also got Peter into a science museum after hours.

Harry felt the final, definitive shift when they drove up to upstate New York for a weekend. Harry told Peter they could go somewhere more exciting like L.A. or Miami, but no, Peter wanted to pass through Albany and see the trees, trees they could’ve seen plenty of in Central Park.

They made an impromptu stop at a camping ground on account of hunger. Harry made them sandwiches, and Peter sat on a cooler as he ate them, peering out at a green lake. Later, they went down to the water to splash their faces, trying to cool off.

This was a new experience Harry was having with Peter. As children, they didn’t have much independence, only enough to wander to Forest Hill’s playground by themselves. At the campground, Harry felt they became solid. He couldn’t describe what he experienced any better than that.

September made little difference to Harry’s days at Oscorp, however, it changed Peter’s. Peter sometimes came by Harry’s place to study since Empire State’s science library was just five blocks away. Peter would talk about his frustration with his classes, meanwhile Harry would rattle off insults about Donald Menken. After a while, Harry started making sure there was enough food in the fridge for both him and Peter. It was just practical. By late October, Peter would leave half of his textbooks in Norman’s old study. He may as well since he was there often enough. In November, Peter went ahead and bought a toothbrush to be kept in the bathroom. Then once December came along, Harry was no longer instructing his maid to clean up the guest room, but to clean “Peter’s room.”

Their lives revolved around each other. If Harry died, it would be Peter who’d grieve the longest. He’d also be the inheritor of a good chunk of the Osborn money – yes, Harry sorted that out in his will already.

Harry’s not sure what the attachment meant, if anything at all. Maybe all it meant was that he was a normal human being, unlike before. In boarding school, he’d party with his classmates, but all he cared about was the vodka hidden in their dressers. Coming back to New York as a CEO didn’t gain him many true friends either. Smythe pretended to care about Harry’s stories about Brazil, yet what he actually cared about was a promotion and pay raise.

Harry sensed that Peter was an outsider too. Peter spent so much time with him, and he rarely talked about anyone at ESU or any old high school friends. He mentioned a guy named Flash Thompson here and there, but otherwise, that was it. When they were lounging in Harry’s living room, he asked Peter, “So do you, like, hang out with anyone else besides me?”

“Not really. And I don’t need to,” Peter said, unashamed. “Nobody else is as interesting.”

Harry didn’t know what to say to that. Well, that wasn’t true – he had a lot to say. He wanted to say how he loved getting texts from Peter late at night, those stupid memes about Pluto. He also liked the fact that whenever he found a funny video online, Peter would call him over so they could laugh at it together. Their talks were nice too, especially the ones where Harry got to tell him about his father, all the mistakes he made while raising Harry. Harry took in everything Peter said about the long-gone Richard and Mary Parker too, feeling good that he was the only person who knew Peter’s thoughts about them. What really made it good though, was that Peter’s shoulders would relax. He became a little happier after those kinds of talks.

Anyway, Harry wasn’t sure if he could say any of that. It was powerful, so it was guaranteed to overcome words, and to be honest, Harry’s confidence. He would simply feel silly saying all that.

Instead, Harry showed it. He sat beside Peter on the couch and kissed him. 

At the end of the night, Peter’s arm was stretched across Harry’s chest, and a bare hip was pressed up against his own, and maybe Harry would have to tell the maid that she didn’t have to fix up Peter’s room anymore. The sheets would be unused. It was dust she’d have to get rid of.

The morning after, Harry started kissing Peter again, mostly as way to remind himself that he could do this kind of thing to Peter now. But Peter pulled away, worried.

“What is it?” Harry asked.

“There’s something you have to know about me, Harry. It’s really crazy, and I don’t know how you’ll react, or if you’ll wanna be with me after because, wow, it’s big. Huge. Anyway, here I go, I’m just gonna say it. I gonna say it before this goes too far. All right, you’re gonna think this is insane – I’m – I’m Spider-Man.”

“I noticed that, Pete. I’ve known for a while.”

Having that fact out in the open didn’t change very much, which was good because Harry was happy with the way things were already.

They’ve been together for a year now. It’s not a remarkable life, despite Peter being a well-known hero. Harry works, Peter studies. Harry’s not sure if “remarkable” is ever what he wanted anyway. Because of his father’s tight leash, he wasn’t in search of much. What his father needed him to be was a businessman and everything else was a distraction. It turns out all that restriction was a good thing because he never got to wander far away from Peter.


End file.
